Janis Lipke
Encyclopedia
Jānis Lipke (1 February 1900, Jelgava
- 14 May 1987, Riga
) was a Latvian
rescuer of Jews in Riga during World War II
.
Lipke, a dock worker in the port of Riga, determined to help save Latvian Jews from capture by the Nazis
after witnessing actions against them in the streets. He retrained in order to become a contractor for the Luftwaffe
, and then used his position to smuggle Jewish workers out of the Riga ghetto
and camps in and around Riga, whom he concealed with the aid of his wife until the arrival of the Red Army
in October 1944. The Lipkes and their various helpers saved forty people in this way, one fifth of the approximately 200 Jews who survived the war in Latvia.
When he died in 1987, the Jews of Riga arranged his funeral, and he is honoured as one of the Righteous among the Nations
.
On 4 July 2007, the day of remembrance of the victims of genocide against the Jewish nation, a monument commemorating those, and in particular Janis Lipke, who saved Latvian Jews was unveiled at Riga's Great Choral Synagogue.http://www.am.gov.lv/en/news/Newsletters/History/2007/38/
Jelgava
-Sports:The city's main football team, FK Jelgava, plays in the Latvian Higher League and won the 2009/2010 Latvian Football Cup.- Notable people :*August Johann Gottfried Bielenstein - linguist, folklorist, ethnographer...
- 14 May 1987, Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
) was a Latvian
Latvians
Latvians or Letts are the indigenous Baltic people of Latvia.-History:Latvians occasionally refer to themselves by the ancient name of Latvji, which may have originated from the word Latve which is a name of the river that presumably flowed through what is now eastern Latvia...
rescuer of Jews in Riga during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Lipke, a dock worker in the port of Riga, determined to help save Latvian Jews from capture by the Nazis
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
after witnessing actions against them in the streets. He retrained in order to become a contractor for the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
, and then used his position to smuggle Jewish workers out of the Riga ghetto
Riga Ghetto
The Riga Ghetto was a small area in Maskavas Forštate, neighborhood of Riga, Latvia, designated by the Nazis where Jews from Latvia, and later from Germany, were forced to live during World War II. On October 25, 1941, the Nazis relocated all Jews from Riga and the vicinity to the ghetto while the...
and camps in and around Riga, whom he concealed with the aid of his wife until the arrival of the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in October 1944. The Lipkes and their various helpers saved forty people in this way, one fifth of the approximately 200 Jews who survived the war in Latvia.
When he died in 1987, the Jews of Riga arranged his funeral, and he is honoured as one of the Righteous among the Nations
Righteous Among the Nations
Righteous among the Nations of the world's nations"), also translated as Righteous Gentiles is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis....
.
On 4 July 2007, the day of remembrance of the victims of genocide against the Jewish nation, a monument commemorating those, and in particular Janis Lipke, who saved Latvian Jews was unveiled at Riga's Great Choral Synagogue.http://www.am.gov.lv/en/news/Newsletters/History/2007/38/